Correct breathing during exercise helps keep blood pressure down and avoids unnecessary stress on the arteries. The National Institute on Aging recommends exhaling while you lift and inhaling as the weights return to their starting position. You should never hold your breath during while lifting weights.

Card writing, cookie baking, parties, concerts, get-togethers, fundraising, volunteering, shopping, wrapping, traveling – as well intentioned as one may be to start early and plan ahead to avoid the rushing-around-last-minute kind of stress that is often associated with the Christmas season, many people find themselves experiencing holiday stress due to lack of time to fit it all in. And we wonder why we’re stressed!

Category: Main MealsDescription: This bite-size mushroom burger makes a tasty meat-free option at summer barbecues. Portobello mushrooms, sometimes also spelled portabella, are actually the same species as a crimini mushroom. Generally, the mushroom is called a crimini when small and a portabello when its cap has grown to about four to six inches in diameter. These large brown mushrooms have a meaty texture and can be grilled, roasted or used as an ingredient in other dishes.One cup of sliced portobello mushrooms, approximately 121 g, makes up a single serving and has only 42 calories. There is 1 g of fat and 5 g of protein in a cup of sliced portobello mushrooms. The total carbohydrate content of a serving of portobello mushrooms is 6 g, of which 3 g is fiber. Water makes up 108 g of the total weight of a 1-cup serving. There are only 12 mg of sodium in a cup of portobello mushrooms, so it is considered a low-sodium food.A 1-cup serving of portobello mushrooms supplies 31 percent of the daily recommended intake of selenium, or 21.4 mcg. It also contains 30 percent of the recommendation for copper and 18 percent of the requirement for both phosphorus and potassium. Other minerals in portabello mushrooms include iron, magnesium, manganese, calcium and zinc. In a serving of portobello mushrooms, there is 7.2 mg of the vitamin niacin, or 36 percent of the daily recommended intake, and 0.6 mg of riboflavin, or 34 percent of the recommendation for that vitamin. Portabello mushrooms also contain the vitamins pantothenic acid, folate, choline, vitamin B6 and thiamin, also known as vitamin B1. The nutrient betaine is also found in portabello mushrooms.Mushrooms also contain compounds called purines, which may cause health problems in individuals with gout. People with this condition may want to avoid eating portobello mushrooms.More antioxidant activity is found in the caps of mushrooms than in the stems. Unlike many other foods, most of the antioxidant level in mushrooms is not destroyed by cooking.